


We’ve Come So Far

by orphan_account



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Character Study, Developing Relationship, Fluff, Getting Together, It doesn’t happen in the fic, M/M, My first fic, Not Beta Read, Not Canon Compliant, TW: Mentions of abuse, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, author abuses parentheses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-03-31
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:35:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23406877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The morning after his wedding, Leonard Snart reflects on his relationship with Barry."If somebody had told seventeen year-old Leonard Snart that this was his future, Leonard Snart would have scoffed and probably stolen their wallet for good measure."
Relationships: Barry Allen/Leonard Snart, Flash/Captain Cold
Comments: 13
Kudos: 133





	We’ve Come So Far

It surprised Len the first time Barry stayed the night, that he slept like a rock. During the day he was full of energy, constantly moving and if he sat still too long he was almost vibrating. It was like the lightning that had struck him, was humming, crackling, bursting under his skin.

Len expected that to carry over into his night, for him to kick and shift all night, but instead Barry just wrapped around Len like an affectionate octopus and slept for six hours straight, not to be woken by anything less than an alarm blaring directly into his ear.

Len found he didn’t mind that at all. Len wasn’t the sentimental type, not really, for all his dramatic gestures and his unhealthy attachment to his parka, he was not sentimental. But with Barry...

When Len woke in the morning, he woke with the sun as it poured in through their bedroom window. Barry didn’t, so Len took his time to watch him. Len couldn’t watch him while he was awake like that, not without Barry blushing in embarrassment and getting overly flustered. Even after all these years. So Len took his time now. The way Barry’s hair got fluffed up in the morning, the way his freckles were splashed across his face and the way his face was smoothed out as he slept. It still took Len’s breath away every time he looked too hard. The most unfortunate part of this all, was that Len didn’t get to see Barry’s eyes as he watched him.

Sometimes Len’s heart would twist in his chest at the thought of Barry, how his soft heart and beautiful, gorgeous soul could have fallen in love with _him_. Him who was scarred, cynical, a thief who had hurt more people than he had once cared to count. Len had started his game with Barry, a game of cat and mouse where it was never clear who the mouse was and who the cat was. (“A game of cat and cat” Lisa had once teased) But Len had never anticipated this. Never anticipated Barry’s relentless faith in him. _(There’s good in you, Snart)_

If somebody had told seventeen year-old Leonard Snart that this was his future, Leonard Snart would have scoffed and probably stolen their wallet for good measure. Seventeen year-old Leonard was cynical and more hardened than any seventeen year-old should ever be, Covered in scars that came from all the wrong places (a kitchen knife, a broken bottle, the butt of a cigarette, and that one time- a bullet)

Len had had two people in his life at that time- Lisa, too mischievous for her own good, a spark of trouble in her eye, and the only reason Len never fought back, never gave as good as he got. And then Mick, at seventeen Len had a shaky trust for the boy who had saved him from a knife his first night in juvie, who had almost as many scars as him, who for some reason had given his loyalty to _Len_. Even with Lisa and Mick, Len would not turn from the path his father had set his feet on. He was a better thief than Lewis had ever been, he never got caught, he could taunt the police, and saunter away, a smirk plastered on his face.

Until Barry. Until Barry came and it was the first time a heist had gone well truly poorly. Every once in awhile Len had had a close call, brushed too close with a cop or a security guard, but in all the time he ran heists, he only ever failed when Barry showed up. Len was a big enough man to admit that at first he was furious, but after a few encounters, the thought of seeing the young hero again excited him.

It wasn't the thrill of the heist anymore, for Len, it wasn’t the satisfaction when he returned to the safe house with an invaluable painting or a rare diamond necklace. It was the playful banter, the thrill of the chase, how neither hero nor villain walked away with anything more than a bruise or two. When Len saw Barry’s face for the first time, when Barry struck a deal, Len’s negotiation skills failed him for the first time and he agreed. And there began the long trip of Len wanting to be better. Barry never made Len better, Barry would never let anybody tell them that, Len made himself better. Barry was just his inspiration.

_(Although, Len didn’t want to imply that Barry Allen was “just” anything)_

Len joined up with Team Flash to face the big threats, because Central City was _his_ city, and he was the most notorious criminal and he wouldn’t let any evil speedster take that from him. (Helping had nothing to do with Barry’s safety, nothing at all.) And he could let himself help out for the smaller fights because he was just in the neighborhood and he thought he would pay his nemesis a little visit, just to get on his nerves. (And this had nothing to do with the way Barry smiled at him at the end of the fight, nothing at all.) And one day, when he was spinning around aimlessly in a chair and STAR labs, when Cisco asked when the next heist would be, Len realized it had been over a year since the last one and that _he didn’t care_.

He still bantered with Barry, he still got his adrenaline rushes, he still had fun, but it didn’t come at a cost anymore. Even his rogues were helping out, although some were rightfully back in prison. Len was never Mardon’s biggest fan anyway, but Hartley and Cisco were a force to be reckoned with and frankly, it was terrifying. If they ever decided that the life of heroics was too boring, the planet was screwed. Even Mick, of all people, was soft for Caitlin at this point.

The only logical step forward was to ask Barry out.

(Lisa had gleefully accepted five dollar bills from almost everyone in the cortex that day, because of course she would be the one to know exactly when it would happen. Apparently it was never a question of if.)

(Even Joe West threatened bodily harm to Len with a proud smile on his face instead of a gun in his hand.)

Barry and Len had very quickly decided that conventional dates didn’t work out for them. The last straw had been the time Len and Barry went out for dinner and the restaurant was almost burned down by a meta human who tried to kidnap kidnap Len because he was on the Flash’s team. Barry hadn’t even bothered helping Len because apparently the meta hadn’t gotten the memo that Len wasn’t a sidekick, and that Len took the cold gun everywhere. (Though many people questioned how he had gotten it into the restaurant when he was wearing skinny jeans and a sweater, Hartley never told anyone about the nanotech he had built for Len.)

That was also the first night Barry had used the word love ( _“True love,” he had said. “Me, the man I love, and his gun.”_ ) and even though it was said jokingly and with mild disapproval that Len had brought the cold gun to their date, Len had frozen. He held his breath and stared at Barry. He felt like he was drowning in his own feelings, drowning in Barry’s feelings, because Barry _loved_ him and because it wasn’t some big deal to Barry to say it the first time. It was said so casually because _of course_ Barry loved him and Len’s heart hurt at the declaration.

( _“I love you too,” he had said, his usual smirk nowhere in sight and his trademark drawl gone. It was just the honest, raw, feeling he felt for Barry._ )

Barry had been incredibly flustered and embarrassed when he realized that he had told Len he loved him for the first time during a joke. He had been red from his cheeks to his neck and Len had kissed him breathless after.

Sometimes, Barry made him feel like he was a teenager. (No, not like _that_.) The butterflies in his stomach, the way he felt everything for Barry so strongly the world was hazy and he couldn’t think straight, the way he could stare at Barry for hours without ever tiring of the sight. But sometimes like _that._

“You know,” Barry had said, one night, throwing popcorn at Len’s face. “I never thought I would have this.”

Len had looked up from the movie. “Have what?” he had asked, ignoring Barry’s serious, love struck tone. “Salt and vinegar popcorn? That’s not really something most people think about all the time.”

Barry had kicked his leg. “No,” he said, waving his hand around. “The domestic stuff, the best friend and lover sort of thing.”

“Not even with Iris?” Len had asked.

Barry had laughed and shook his head. “No, I thought if I was ever with Iris, it would be like a romcom where everything was sickeningly romantic,” he had explained. “The candles, the oversized teddy bears, you know.”

Len had hesitated with his next handful of popcorn. “Is that something you want?” He asked. “Because I will steal you the biggest teddy bear in the city, I know where to find it.”

“You haven’t stolen anything in months,” Barry had laughed, ignoring Len’s muttered, _that you know of_. “But no, I wouldn’t trade this for all the gooey romance in the world. It’s not us.”

And it wasn’t, they were romantic sure, but not in the gooey, Valentines, chocolate strawberry, a dozen red roses romantic. Their romance was Barry never failing to laugh when Captain Cold points his gun at the criminal of the night and says “Freeze”. Their romance was Len patiently and attentively listening to Barry ramble and over explain his science. Their romance was Len showing up to every date ten minutes late, because they both knew Barry would be fifteen minutes late. Their romance was Barry sneaking Len into his lab so they could spend more time together when they both had busy schedules.

And their romance was Barry grumbling the entire trek from the road to the middle of the forest. “I didn’t know hiking was a thing that we did, Len,” he had said. “Are we hikers now? Because if we are we should go somewhere more exciting.”

“I think this place is exciting,” Len had said calmly, except his nerves were skyrocketing and little box in his pocket felt like it was a million pounds. “The last time we were here together, we definitely weren’t bored.”

Barry had stopped walking, looking around. Four years later, the clearing was a lot different when the night Barry had taken off his mask and when both of them had changed their lives. “This isn’t-"

“It is,” said Len. “I was surprised I could find it so easily, even with my eidetic memory.”

The clearing was now full of life, in the early summer, the last time they had been here it was late fall. And the sun streamed in now, as opposed to the dark shadows cast by moonlight that night. But it was still the same, and Len thought it was about time everything came full circle.

“Len,” Barry had said, his eyes wide and his movement slow for once. “Why are we here?”

Len had stared at him in wonder and awe for a moment, still taken aback by his beauty. “So we could remember how far we’ve come together,” he had said, and taken Barry’s hands in his own. He had let go of one so he could fumble in his pocket and pull out the box. “And so that we could promise to keep going together, because there’s nobody else I want to do it with.”

Barry had taken the box, slowly turning it over before opening it.

“Marry me, Barry?” Len had asked.

Barry had shoved the open box back at him. “Of course,” he whispered. “Of course, I will. You put it on for me.”

Except it took they couldn’t get the ring on Barry’s finger, because Len’s hands were shaking and Barry was vibrating with excitement and emotion and he was laughing and crying and “Scarlet, just stay still damnit.”

Barry had sped back to the lab and come back with a metal detector because of course they had dropped the ring and couldn’t find it anywhere. Len had wiped the dirt off the ring on his shirt and they had finally gotten it on Barry’s finger.

“I love you so much,” Barry had said, his arms wrapped around Len’s waist, and he face pressed into his shoulder. “Even if I dropped the ring.”

“I love you too,” Len had whispered. “But let’s go back to the city, because I’m really not a nature person.”

And that brought Len almost to where they were now. Len pulled back the sheets on the bed so he could pick up Barry’s hand, and run his thumb over the wedding band that had replaced the engagement ring. Barry Allen, his husband.

Len leaned over and brushed a kiss over Barry’s forehead. “Scarlet,” he murmured. “Wake up.”

Even in sleep, Barry couldn’t refuse a request from Len and his eyes opened blearily. When his gaze found Len’s he broke into a wide smile.

“Good morning, husband,” he said, reaching up so he could tug Len’s lips down to his own.

“Good morning, husband,” said Len after they pulled apart. Len ran his hands up Barry’s sides, still marveling at the sheer emotion he felt for Barry.

Barry grunted and pulled Len down against him fully, so they were fully cuddling.

“Mine,” he mumbled, pressing his lips to Len’s shoulder. His eyes fluttered shut again.

Len held him closer and shut his eyes against the overwhelming wave of love and adoration he felt. “Always.”

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly never expected that the first fic I would post here would be for the Flash, but I can't say I regret it. I had a ton of fun writing this, hope you enjoyed it. Please let me know about any mistakes so I can fix them!


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